Colorado Secures Crucial Victory Over Oregon in Tense Battle for PAC12 Standings

David Mashinsky/Mash Sports Media

Colorado was in hostile territory in Eugene last night but were able to come out with a win in the last few minutes with the final score being 79-75. Oregon was off to a hot start and was up 11-2 early in the game. This was largely due to freshmen guard Jackson Shelstad starting off the game 3-3 from the field. This was an important game for both teams as the victor secured the third spot in the PAC12 standings as well as the implications for the NCAA Tournament. 

This was a back and fourth game and J’Vonne Hadley stepped up for a Colorado team that was without Cody Williams and Julian Hammond. Hadley scored 20 points on 8/11 shooting as well as going 4/4 from three. He also had 12 rebounds and scored a basket with 12 seconds left to secure the win. Every time it seemed Colorado had pulled away Oregon would throw another punch. After a 9-0 run by Colorado to go up 70-61, Jermaine Couisnard scored eight straight points to bring the Ducks within two with 36 seconds to go, but they weren’t able to score again after that. 

Colorado made 55.2% of their shots, hitting 32 out of 58 attempts from the field and managed to sink 8 out of 17 three-point attempts. Meanwhile, Oregon successfully made 32 out of 60 field goal attempts, resulting in a shooting percentage of 53.3%, and connected on 7 out of 24 attempts from beyond the three-point line.

This was possibly the best win Colorado has had all season. It's’s their only quad 1 win on the road all season. Colorado has been trying to separate themselves from Utah in the PAC12 as both teams are being considered for a March Madness bid. Utah had an upset loss last night to Oregon State which may have ended their hopes for March especially after Colorado’s impressive win. 

Colorado faces Oregon State for their final game of the season on Saturday at 3pm MT. The game will televised and can be streamed on the PAC12 Network.